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AQA English Literature GCSE 2015 JUNE SUMMER *OFFICIAL THREAD* OMAM AIC

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Original post by TheClassicsGeek
I found the devices very difficult too! I wrote about the metaphor of 'buzzed' and started talking about flies and insignificance and everything and then discussed the mockingbird as a symbol and started blabbing about how Atticus uses the word 'sin' and discussing the religious imagery which i think is totally wrong! I think i might have mentioned 'tribal' and said that it portrayed the Finches as an army fighting against Maycomb as well! Do you think that is suitable? I'm really panicking now that I didn't say more about sentence structure:frown:


No I think you should be fine! You read between the lines unlike me who made generalised comments. I'm desperately hoping that LOTF pulls my grade up because the TKAM was just awful!
Original post by examswhizz
No - you won't be penalised --- as long as it links to the question the examiner will be LOOKING for places to give marks to you. I am sure it will be fine! 😊


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Thanks it did say explicitly 'one' which did put the fear in God in me, funny what exam stress can do 😊
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nashp
Original post by Nila15
What do u think the grade boundaries would be for this paper as it is was not completely easy (BTW I did OMAM and AIC)?


I'm hoping low, Very low. I completely screwed up on mine


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For section b my 4 paragraphs were:
Candys dogs death
Lennie and curley fight
Crooks and his eperation
George killing lennie
Guys what points did you talk about in the Mr birling question? Also guys grade boundaries for englishh it to hardly change. Expect 49-52 out of 68 for an a star.
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Nila15
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Original post by nashp
I'm hoping low, Very low. I completely screwed up on mine


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Lol don't worry the grade boundaries tend to be a bit low anyways. BTW last years grade boundaries were A*-51, A-41 Around this number I believe, B-34 and c-29... I guess the grade boundaries will be roughly similar this year too and bear in mind not everyone does the same novels or plays so they have to come up with a grade boundary which is applicable to all!!!
Found the Crucible question a little difficult at first, chose Parris. I mainly spoke about his creed and obsession with reputation, also about how Putnam manipulates him.
To Kill A Mockingbird I found the passage okay, mainly talked about words choices, a little of sentence structure and the asyndetic listing.
For part b I chose Boo, I spoke about parts from the beginning of the novel and the end. Mainly bout prejudice, injustice and destruction of innocence.

Need to start revising for Drama and Geography tomorrow, fun timesl
Will I lose marks if i didn't include a intro/conc but finished all sections ? Not enough time i did nearly always link back all my paragraphs
Original post by GCSE student 1
How did everyone find it? I don't the Crucible, and I answered the question on Parris, but I hadn't revised him because he CAME UP IN 2012 aqa can be so mean sometimes. OMAM was ok, although the passage was quite difficult, for section b I talked about the treatment of black people, crooks, as well as the treatment of women, Curleys wife.




That's what I talked about as well 😁😀
Original post by TheTruthTeller
Guys what points did you talk about in the Mr birling question? Also guys grade boundaries for englishh it to hardly change. Expect 49-52 out of 68 for an a star.



I talked about dramatic irony and how Priestley presents him as untrustworthy. I also talked about bathos in the fact he is only interested in the marriage due to the partnership with the crofts. I also talked about the structure like the layout and how he thinks he is socially superior and also linking it to the seven deadly sins of greed and to a quote
The bit about candy and living conditions yes but not really on the conditions like health and lice and stuff you needed to talk about the brutal life for crooks and curleys wife for example and how they were treated
Original post by TheTruthTeller
Guys what points did you talk about in the Mr birling question? Also guys grade boundaries for englishh it to hardly change. Expect 49-52 out of 68 for an a star.


I thought grade boundaries would go up! Everyone predicted Mr Birling and everyone made practice essays on him!

My hand was shaking at the beginning since I was so nervous so I had to hold my pen in a weird way. Beforehand, I made an essay on Mr Birling and just included the quote they asked you to analyse as well at the end.

How does Priestley present Arthur Birling in An Inspector Calls?



In Mr Birling, who represents the ruling capitalist class, Priestley portrays a character whose actions and ideology can be easily censured by the audience.



When Priestley introduces Mr Birling, he describes the head of the household as 'portentous' and 'rather provincial in speech'. Priestley exploits the different meanings of the word 'portentous', for the word could not only refer to Birling's pompous personality (which hints the actions of the character after the Inspector's departure), but also a threatening side, which has the ability to unleash misfortune. The malign and supernatural connotations of the word 'portent' highlights the Inspector's messianic role- Birling and his capitalist views are evils to humanity which must be vanquished. Both meanings of 'portentous' are stressed when Birling threatens Eric when the latter reminds him of the responsibility of the entire family in the death of Eva Smith. Instead of addressing the point, Mr Birling, being too self-centred to see the error of his ways, interrupts, 'threatening Eric' to remain silent in order or face expulsion from the house. The impression on the audience is that in Birling's (and other capitalist households), there was only a facade of unity to begin with between the members of the family, despite Birling's claim that a man has to look after his family.


However, by this point, Birling's attitude would come across as unsurprising to the audience, as Priestley had already demonstrated at the start of the play that Birling was wrong. Firstly, Birling is factually incorrect regarding his predictions. For example, Birling declares the forthcoming sailing of the Titanic, which he heralds as a testament to the progress brought by capitalism, as 'unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable'. Birling's repetition of the word 'unsinkable', the dramatic irony being that the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage, is not only a way for Priestley to remind the audience how deluded Birling is in believing in an ideology which has caused (and continues to cause) the deaths of multitudes of innocents, but also serves as a premonition to the announcement of the suicide of Eva Smith. To Priestley, the underlying reason for Birling's mistaken predictions lies in his worldview. When Birling is about to pass on his philosophy of life ("a man has to mind his own business and look after himself":wink: to Eric and Gerald, the audience hears 'the sharp ring of a front door bell'. This is when Priestley introduces the Inspector as a dramatic device so that he can expose Birling's wrongdoings.



To the Inspector, who transcends social class and status, the fact the Birling sacked Eva Smith during his tenure of Lord Mayor at Brumley makes no difference regarding the gravity of his actions. Priestley would expect the audience to scoff at Birling’s repeated claims of being Lord Mayor for the word ‘Lord’, from the Biblical meaning, would imply a person who is benign as well as being all powerful. However, in doing so, the audience realises that Mr. Birling, who lacks any sense of morality, became an alderman (all Lord Mayors had to be aldermen) because he was elected by common people, whether directly or indirectly. Therefore, the message Priestley may have wanted to send to the audience was that ordinary people were complicit in the actions of the powerful, capitalist class by voting them in to positions in which they are meant to set an example to society.

Priestley writes that the Birlings' dining room in Act Three 'can show a small table with a telephone on it'. Since the play was set in 1912, when telephones, could be afforded only by the well-off, the telephone may just be there as a symbol of wealth and prosperity. Yet more importantly, a telephone is also a device used for communication and to connect one's household to others. The fact that the telephone is placed not long before the Inspector's didactic speech on connectivity and mutual responsibility, and remains after the Inspector's departure, could be Priestley's method of showing the audience that the Inspector's lesson still holds true during his absence. Indeed, just when Birling mocks the younger generation's foolishness for heeding the call of the Inspector, the telephone rings sharply. This reminds the audience of the ringing of the doorbell, which happened when Birling explicitly rejected the socialist idea of responsibility, and of the Inspector's message- that if we do not care for each other, we will be taught it 'in fire and blood and anguish'. This makes the audience wonder whether Birling, who has failed to change his ways, will meet this very fate after the 'real' police inspector arrives.
(edited 8 years ago)
Original post by TH3-FL45H
How much did you guys write

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I wrote 9 pages overall, what about you?
Original post by GCSE student 1
I wrote 9 pages overall, what about you?


I must have written 6 pages in total- 3 for Mr Birling and 3 for Of Mice and Men but I crossed loads of stuff out so it should count as 5 and a half pages in length.
Is that what you wrote, it's really sophisticated and well written well done 😁😀 you will get an A* palette
(edited 8 years ago)
Original post by Saffiee
Is that what you wrote, it's really sophisticated and well written well done 😁😀 you will get an A* palette


I think I missed a few minor things out (nothing major) as I was so nervous and I somehow added a section not on my draft- relating capitalism vs socialism to the traditional morality play (God vs Lucifer) in the bit describing Birling as 'portentous' as Priestley was writing for a Christian audience for the audience to relate better to the message.
(edited 8 years ago)
I wrote 9 too!

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Original post by a_hussain15
I wrote 9 too!

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How many sides of paper did you use for section A (Inspector Calls, Crucible etc)?
I thought the OMAM was literally impossible I found it so so hard and I've completely messed it up!! I really struggled to find language features to analyse in the extract I just wrote about the violent verbs (screamed, cried, writhed, begged) and the "flopping like a fish" image and it was so so so awful...then in part b I was so lost, I wrote about the shooting of candys dog reflecting the brutality of treatment of the weak, about Curley using brutality to enforce his social power and about brutality being a source of entertainment on the ranch (the fight at Christmas)

I am so disappointed with myself I did it so wrong I'm going to fail and get a D :frown: :frown: :frown:
[QUOTE=Palette;55919921]I think I missed a few minor things out (nothing major) as I was so nervous and I somehow added a section not on my draft- relating capitalism vs socialism to the traditional morality play (God vs Lucifer) in the bit describing Birling as 'portentous' as Priestley was writing for a Christian audience for the audience to relate better to the message.

That's minor your still gonna do great as you have included lots of perceptive and good points 😀

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